Courtyard Houses: Starting with Li Yunlong's Comrades-in-Arms

Seeing no one respond, Liu Haizhong's wife leaned forward again, her tone tentative and cautious: "Sister-in-law Wang, let me tell you, I have a nephew on my family's side. He's twenty-one this year, a factory worker, a permanent employee, earning a little over thirty yuan a month. He's good-looking, honest, doesn't smoke or drink, and just knows how to work. If you think it's alright, I'll have him come over to our house sometime, to meet Tingting?"

Before she could finish speaking, Yi Zhonghai's wife chimed in, "Sister-in-law Wang, I also have someone suitable. My cousin's son is twenty-two this year, a vocational school graduate, and now works in a government office in the district. I've met him several times; he's very polite, wears glasses, and has a good temper. He and Tingting look like a perfect match."

Wang Xiuhe put down her chopsticks and looked at the people present: "Sisters-in-law, I appreciate your kind intentions. However, there's no rush for Tingting's marriage."

She paused, her gaze sweeping over the expectant and inquiring faces at the table, before continuing, "Yuheng said that if Tingting still doesn't pass the university entrance exam next month, he'll send her to join the army. She'll train in the military for a few years first, and we'll talk about marriage later."

Upon hearing this, the people at the table were all stunned for a moment.

Yi Zhonghai's wife was the first to react. She put down her chopsticks, looked at Wang Xiuhe, and asked with a puzzled tone, "Sister-in-law Wang, why did you decide to send Tingting, a girl, to the army? It's so tough in the army. Every day there's morning exercises, training, and guard duty, exposed to the wind and sun. How can a girl endure that? Besides, Tingting is doing well at the library now. The work is easy, and the environment is good. Why should she go to the army to suffer like that?"

Several middle-aged women nearby nodded in agreement, with one adding, "That's right, why would a girl be a soldier?" Another muttered, "What was Minister Liu thinking?"

Liu Haizhong's wife chimed in, "Sister-in-law Wang, if you want to keep Tingting for a few years, we can take our time and choose. There's no rush. Sending a young girl to the army would be too much of a hardship for her."

Wang Xiuhe's expression remained unchanged after hearing these words: "It's good for Tingting to train in the army. She's never suffered much hardship growing up. Although her family isn't wealthy, they haven't deprived her of anything. These past two years, she hasn't been focused on her studies, just drifting around all day like she hasn't grown up. Spending two years in the army, with discipline and things to keep her busy, won't do her any harm. I've discussed it with Yuheng, and he thinks it's a good idea too."

Liu Tingting sat next to Wang Xiuhe, listening to everything from beginning to end, her expression growing increasingly grim. She kept her head down, poking at her food with her chopsticks, her lips pressed tightly together.

She felt a surge of anger welling up inside her, wanting to argue and say, "I'm not going," but seeing Wang Xiuhe's determined face, she swallowed the words back. She knew in her heart that this wasn't Wang Xiuhe's decision alone, but Liu Yuheng's.

In this family, no one can object to Liu Yuheng's decisions.

Seeing Wang Xiuhe's firm stance, Yan Bugui's wife was anxious, but dared not say anything directly. Her eyes darted around, and she changed her tone, becoming even warmer: "Sister-in-law Wang, let's talk about going to the army later. There's no rush. I was just mentioning it casually. You know my husband, Jiecheng; he's two years older than Tingting, and we grew up in the same courtyard. We know each other very well."

"Jiecheng is an honest, well-behaved boy who doesn't cause trouble. Although he doesn't have a formal job yet, he's been looking for opportunities and will get a factory job sooner or later. If Tingting marries into our family, our two families will be even closer, and we can take care of each other in the future. Wouldn't that be wonderful?"

Before Wang Xiuhe could respond to her words, Jia Zhangshi at the next table couldn't hold back any longer.

Jia Zhangshi, who had been listening intently to the commotion, scoffed when she heard Yan Bugui's wife mention "my Jiecheng." "Marry into your family? In the Yan family, if you married into their household, you'd have to count every single pickled vegetable, and even buying a piece of tofu would be a struggle. You'd have to contribute to their food expenses. Yan Jiecheng doesn't even have a proper job yet. How dare he marry Liu Yuheng's sister? Does he even deserve her?"

These words were blunt and harsh, leaving no room for Yan Bugui's wife to save face.

Yan Bugui's wife's face flushed red instantly. She turned her head sharply, glaring at Jia Zhangshi, and raised her voice: "Jia Zhangshi, what do you mean? What's wrong with my family? We're honest and law-abiding, we don't steal or rob, so why aren't we good enough for each other? You sure know how to talk. Your Jia Dongxu is a third-grade worker, earning a little over forty yuan a month, supporting your whole family, and you have the nerve to laugh at others?"

Upon hearing this, Jia Zhangshi puffed out her chest, straightened her neck, and adopted a "who's afraid of me?" attitude, her voice sharp and bright: "No matter what, my Dongxu is a regular employee, earning over forty yuan a month to support his wife and children. And your Jiecheng? He doesn't even have a job, and you still have the nerve to talk? Ask everyone in the courtyard, which girl would want to marry into the Yan family and spend her days calculating meager wages with you?"

The two were talking back and forth, and it looked like they were about to start arguing. Seeing this, several middle-aged women nearby quickly put down their chopsticks and tried to mediate.

Those at Wang Xiuhe's table nodded in agreement upon hearing Jia Zhangshi's words. Some lowered their heads to pick up food, concealing the smiles on their lips; others picked up their cups to drink water, their gazes sweeping over Yan Bugui's wife's face before returning to their own.

Everyone knew that given the state of the Yan family, it would be a miracle if Liu Yuheng agreed to let Liu Tingting marry Yan Jiecheng.

Everyone in the courtyard knows how stingy Yan Bugui and his wife are. If Liu Tingting really marries them, forget about enjoying a good life; she'll be lucky to even have a more comfortable life than she has now. Although Jia Zhangshi's words were harsh, they made sense.

Hearing Jia Zhangshi's words, Wang Xiuhe couldn't help but feel a little happy. She had been wondering how to deflect Yan Bugui's wife's comment without losing face too much. Now, with Jia Zhangshi, the troublemaker, there was no need for her to say it herself. She picked up her cup, took a sip of water, and suppressed the smile on her lips.

While the group was still arguing with Yan Bugui's wife and Jia Zhangshi, Wang Xiuhe put down her cup, looked at everyone present, and seized the opportunity to continue the conversation: "Alright, alright, stop arguing. I've discussed Tingting's matter with her father, and Yuheng will make the decision. Yuheng knows many people and has broad experience; his judgment on Tingting is much better than us two old folks making things up. Lao Liu and I won't worry about it anymore; we'll wait until Yuheng finds someone suitable."

The people present looked at each other, none of them able to say anything. Yi Zhonghai's wife nodded, holding her cup, and Liu Haizhong's wife also put down her chopsticks and nodded, saying, "That's true, that's true."

Xu Fugui's wife sat beside him without saying a word, but now she nodded, though her mind was already racing.

She thought to herself, "Didn't you see that even Da Mao from our family didn't dare to make a move on Liu Tingting? Who is Liu Yuheng? The Minister of the Second Ministry of Machine Building. Could he just find Liu Tingting any random family? Definitely not. He would definitely find Liu Tingting a promising young man, at the very least the son of a cadre, or some other promising young man."

As she was thinking, she suddenly remembered her fifteen-year-old daughter, Xu Yun.

Xu Yun is fifteen years old and still in middle school. She has delicate features and a gentle temperament. If she were the right age, marrying her into the Liu family might be a possibility. Liu Yuheng is good to his family and takes such good care of his sister-in-law, Liang Fangfang. If they were to become proper in-laws, wouldn't that be wonderful?

But then she thought again, Liu Yixuan, the son of the Liu family, was only nine years old, too young, several years younger than Xu Yun. As for Liu Yuheng's child, he was even younger. Xu Fugui's wife sighed inwardly and suppressed the thought.